Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Dr Seuss Cupcakes: Displayed on a Unique Cupcake Cake Stand

I received this in my email via Google alerts - cupcakes with  Dr Seuss toppers all displayed on a unique  cupcake cake stand.It's from a blog called Carly's Cakes, Cupcakes and Cookies.

Carly loves everything cupcakes - the image above shows the cupcakes that were made by Carly and the cupcake cake stand that was given to her by a friend. Read more about Carly and her hobby here

How to Make a Cupcake Cake Stand

I saw the most colorful, cupcake cake stand, displaying irresistible cupcakes at designdazzle.blogspot. She shares with you - easy to follow instruction on how to build your own cupcake cake stand. The beautiful image below is from her site.

A cupcake stand is a perfect way to display your cupcakes. I've included instructions on how to make a quick and easy cupcake stand.

Supplies:

10" and 13" cake boards or (thin wood cutout)
1/2 yard fabric for bottom cupcake layer
1/3 yard fabric for top cupcake layer
2 1/4 yards ribbon
fabric glue
couple (pvc pipe) purchased at Home Depot $2

optional:
spray paint
elastic

Read the rest of her instructions here

Release your creativity - you will have fun and more fun building your very own cupcake cake stand.

Enjoy!

 

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Bakery Goals 1000 cupcakes for Cupcakes for a Cause

 

At Cupcake Cake Stands we are always on the look out for interesting articles about the world of cupcakes. This article is from New Transcript

Bakery goal: 1,000 cupcakes for charity

Eat Cake makes sweet treats for Cupcakes for a Cause
BY JACQUELINE HLAVENKA Staff Writer
A local bakery is whipping up cupcakes from scratch to raise money for children affected by cancer. Eat Cake Bakery of Matawan, in the Colonial Shops mall on Route 79, is participating in the seventh annual Cupcakes for a Cause week, Sept. 21-26.

Robert Gomez Robert GomezThe program that encourages businesses and people across the country to bake and sell treats to generate funding for cancer research and professional services that benefit children with a cancer diagnosis.

“We like to do a lot of stuff for the kids, anything that helps them. A lot of [the funding] is for professional services,” said Robert Gomez, of the Morganville section of Marlboro, who co-owns the bakery.

During Cupcakes for a Cause week, the bakery will donate 50 percent of the proceeds from the cupcakes to CancerCare for Kids, a national nonprofit that provides counseling, support groups, information about the disease and treatment options, and financial assistance for families.

The inspiration for the cupcake program started in 2004 when CancerCare enrolled bakeries in New York City to create specialized and uniquely decorated cupcakes. The campaign was a success in Manhattan and gained momentum outside city limits.

“This is the seventh year they are doing it,” Gomez said. “It started out just in New York City with a few bakeries. … Now it’s a nationwide event.”

Eat Cake, which took over the Heritage Bakery shop two years ago, is participating in Cupcakes for a Cause for the second year.

“In those two years, we’ve put our fingerprints on a couple of things,” said coowner Bruce Wynn, of Englewood. “They [CancerCare] called us because they know we are a bakery in the area and they wanted to know if we wanted to get involved. … It’s a good cause and we do a lot of different things for kids. We do fundraisers for school football teams, cheerleading and all of that.”

The bakery charges $2 for a cupcake and was hoping to sell 1,000 or more of the tasty treats by the end of the special week.

“Our goal was to do 1,000 last year, which is our same goal this year,” Gomez said. “We did 700 last year … we would love to do more.”


This year, the bakery will offer five flavors of cupcakes that will be mixed-andmatched during the week, including red velvet, bananas Foster, s’mores, Key lime pie, German chocolate and piña colada.

“Last year we did two flavors and this year I wanted to change it up,” Gomez said, showing off trays of the treats fresh out of the oven. “We did chocolate peanut butter and strawberry shortcake. Chocolate peanut butter was definitely the winner,” he laughed.

The preparation and baking process for the cupcakes takes two hours and another two hours for decorating, Gomez said. Each completed cupcake is adorned with an edible smiley-face CancerCare for Kids sugar candy logo.

The secret to Eat Cake’s cupcakes, Gomez says, is butter cream — and lots of it — which is made every day in-house.

“It’s an all-butter butter cream,” Gomez said.

In addition to taking part in Cupcakes for a Cause, the bakery has participated in local fundraisers for the Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District, the Marlboro K-8 School District, the Marlboro Education Foundation, the Matawan United Methodist Church, the Matawan Food Pantry and Castle of Dreams Animal Rescue in Keyport.

Next, the bakery would like to donate cakes to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick.

“They have a big children’s cancer division,” Gomez said. “We would want to do something up there.”

The bakery staff has been publicizing the event through social networking sites like Facebook and sending out email newsletters to regular customers.

By promoting Cupcakes for a Cause online, Gomez hopes fans of the bakery will spread the word.

“[Last year] we got people coming from Hightstown and Bordentown,” he said. “Facebook really helps because people have friends from all over. I have friends that live in Virginia and Arizona, and they are asking if we can ship to them.”

Observing September as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Gomez and Wynn said giving back to the community is one of the bakery’s core philosophies.

“We are there for them all year round,” Wynn said.

For more information, call 732-566- 6720 or visit http://www.eatcake24-7.com.

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Cupcakes for a Cause: CancerCare for Kids Program

Cupcakes  have become trendy and the people at Cancer Care are using Cupcakes as a vehicle for fundraising.

Cancer Care Cancer Care Launched Cupcake for a Cause in 2004 by enlisting by enlisting small group of bakeries in NYC to sell specially decorated cupcakes to raise funds  for CancerCare For Kids program.

Since then, Cupcakes for a Cause has grown into an annual national fundraiser for the CancerCare for Kids program where businesses and people across the country bake, sell, and enjoy cupcakes to raise funds for this vital program, which provides free support services to children affected by cancer and their families.

Taking place in September, during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, the campaign has three main components:

  1. Cupcakes for a Cause® Week, September 20-26, 2010: A week-long event with hundreds of bakeries and grocery stores around the country selling specially-marked cupcakes and donating a portion of sales to CancerCare for Kids. Find a participating bakery in your neighborhood...
  2. Cupcakes for a Cause® Bake Sales: Businesses, community and student groups, and individuals across the country host bake sales throughout the fall and donate the proceeds to CancerCare for Kids.
    Learn more...
  3. e-Cupcakes: Create your own e-Cupcake and send it to your friends and family for free! Presenting sponsor göt2b is donating $1 for every e-Cupcake sent in September, up to $10,000. Create an e-Cupcake now...

Children and teens who are affected by cancer have needs and concerns that are different than adults. That's why CancerCare has a program called CancerCare for Kids®. It's all part of the free, professional services CancerCare provides to kids and families facing cancer. Learn more...

You can read the rest of this article here

 

Monday, September 6, 2010

How to Make a Cupcake Wedding Cake

The staff at http://www.cupcakecakestand.net found this amazing article at WikiHow :


Read article here

How to Make a Cupcake Wedding Cake

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit
Cupcakes are all the rage, even Martha Stewart agrees! Using cupcakes as an alternative to the traditional large, tiered wedding cake is not only chic and trendy, it's also great for your budget. Add to that the fact that the cupcake wedding cake is doable for even the most novice baker, with the added benefit that the cupcakes can be made and frozen ahead of time, the cupcake wedding cake is a sensible and creative choice. Here is how to prepare your own cupcake wedding cake.

Steps

  1. Determine the number of guests. It is very important not to underestimate this part; while not everyone will want a piece of traditional wedding cake, almost everyone will want a cupcake!
    • Do you want enough for guests to have one (or more) cupcakes at the wedding and one to take home?
    • Do you want a mini cake at the very top of the cupcake wedding cake? Some people like this as an added design feature for the bride and groom to keep after the wedding.
  2. Plan the cupcake decoration. From a simple buttercream frosting to edible petals to inexpensive cupcake caps, you have lots of options. Do you want intricate designs on some of the cupcakes only, or on all? Do you want to mix and match designs? Think about the various possibilities. Some decorative designs to consider include:
    • Unique toppers that are just for the bride and groom.
    • A beloved symbol representing the bride and groom, such as doves, swans, or flowers.
    • Hearts and initials.
    • Floral designs.
    • Real flowers atop the frosting. (Be sure to use non-toxic flowers.)
    • Garden wedding designs.
    • Butterflies.
    • A fondant bow.
    • A fun photo of the bride and groom attached with a toothpick.
  3. Choose a tiered stand or an equivalent arrangement. There are lots of stands currently available, or you can simply choose to arrange the cupcake display as works best for you.
    • If using a stand, decide whether you want to buy or rent. If the cost is reasonable, consider purchasing it as you can use the stand again and again for tea parties, etc. Stands come in ceramic, plastic, acrylic, metal, etc.
    • Consider a round tier.
    • Consider a square tier.
    • Consider an "in the round" - a combination of using both stands and a round covered table for a larger wedding party.
  4. Set your schedule. It is important to work out who will be responsible for preparing the cupcakes. Even if you are doing this yourself, only the cupcake itself can be frozen ahead; the decorations must be done very close to the wedding time -- is that something you are prepared to do at the last minute?
    • Consider whether it might be less stressful to have a family member(s) or friend(s) do it for you. You can sit down with the people responsible for preparing the cupcake wedding cake and talk them through the decorating, even show them what you want and provide photos of a test run. (Make a little photo instruction book that they can keep and follow.)
    • If you are going to do the baking, cupcakes freeze well (before decoration) and can be made a month out.
  5. Bake your cupcakes. Choose a cupcake recipe that you love and prepare it in advance of the wedding. Freeze if necessary. Some ideas for suitable wedding cupcakes include:
  6. Choose the frosting (icing) flavor and texture to decorate the cupcakes. Cupcake frosting can be made in almost any flavor imaginable: vanilla, chocolate, banana, etc. Match the flavor with the cupcake.
  7. Arrange transportation for the cupcakes and stand. More good news - cupcakes are much easier to transport than a wedding cake.
    • New, clean plastic sweater boxes/tubs are great for transporting, and they can usually hold about 40 cupcakes. These cost about US$5.
    • Decide whether or not you want the cupcakes wrapped in paper, as shown in this image. This can protect the cupcakes while still appearing pretty but it does change the appearance considerably.
  8. Assemble the cupcake wedding cake at the venue. Once the cupcakes arrive, have someone arrange them in the correct order if you are not doing this yourself.
    • Provide clear instructions. This is where your precise instructions are very important, down to the last ribbon and floral piece! Use a photo book taken when you rehearsed the design to help those doing the decorating to get it right.
    • Consider well in advance whether you want flowers, lace, ribbon, figurines, signs, photos, etc., to form part of the overall wedding cake set up.
    • Don't forget to include some silver slides or tongs to help people take the cupcakes without touching the stand or bumping their hands against other cupcakes.
  9. Provide the opportunity for guests to take their cupcake(s) home. If you have made enough cupcakes to allow guests to take one home, provide a carry container.
    • 3" x 3" x 3" (7.5 cm x 7.5 cm x 7.5 cm) gift boxes make your beautiful wedding cupcakes into a take home treat.

Video

This video demonstrates how to make petal frosting and flour paste painted butterflies for decorating wedding cupcakes.

Tips

  • At US$1 to $3 each, cupcakes are a great alternative to wedding cakes from US$4 and up per serving.
  • If you're creative, stands can be built by making circles or squares of Styrofoam, covered with aluminum foil and hot gluing around with ribbon. Use thick Styrofoam pillars to hold up the tier.

Things You'll Need

  • Cupcakes (see suggested recipes in steps)
  • Cupcake holders/papers
  • Frosting and edible coloring
  • Decorative elements (fondant, molded chocolates, flowers, etc.)
  • Stand, ribbon, decorations
  • Favor boxes (if relevant)

Related wikiHows

Sources and Citations

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Make a Cupcake Wedding Cake. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.